Pneumatic ore-separator.



M. S. & C. F. MACCARTHY.

PNEUMATIC ORE SEFARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. I9 c917.

1,289,846. Patente Dec. 31, 1918.

v I ENVENTORC) M-SAAAC CARTHY ANY? C. F MAC CARTHY MARION S.MAcOABTI-IY, 0F DENVER, COLORADO, AND CHARLES F. MAoCARTI-IY, OFGARTHAGE, NEW MEXICO, ASSIGNORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO SAID MARION S.MAGGARTHY.

PNEUMATIC ORE-SEPARATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 31, 1918.

Application filed December 19, 1917. 7 Serial No. 207,859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, MARION S. Mao- CARTHY and CHARLES F. MAOCARTHY,residing, respectively, at Denver, in the county of Denver and State ofColorado, and at Carthage, in the county of Socorro and State of NewMexico, citizens of the United States, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Pneumatic Ore-Separators, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in ore separators of the typecommonly known as pneumatic jigs.

In machines of this character, two balanced columns of materialsupported in communicating compartments upon a substantially horizontalscreen are subjected to a pulsating or jigging action by impulses of airintermittently supplied to a chamber beneath the screen.

This chamber which at its lower end connects with the source ofair-supply, naturally receives all fine mineral matter which during thejigging action, falls through the meshes of the screen.

While the particles falling in the chamber have individually a tendencyto remain in suspension, they readily accumulate and eventually clog theentrance through which the air enters the chamber, thereby cutting offthe air-supply and incapacitating the separator.

It has been observed that even the pro vision of an escape-opening inthe air-supply pipe as may be found in many pneumatic igs of theabove-mentioned type, is not sufficient to remedy this defect inasmuchas the particles remaining in suspension in the airchamber fall atirregular intervals in clusters of a size more than sufiicient topermanently block the escape-hole, probably due to the variations in theair pressure which occur 1n the operation of the machine.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide simple andeflicient means by which the particles falling through the screen bottomof the concentrating chamber are collected before they reach theentrance to the air-chamber and caused to move toward and through one ormore discharge-openings in the sides of the same.

With the above object in view, our invent1on consists in the features ofconstruction and arrangement of parts hereinafter to be described andshown in theirpreferred form 1n the accompanying drawings in the variousviews of which like parts are similarly designated, and in which- Figure1 represents a vertical section through a pneumatic separator to whichour above-described improvements have been applied, I

Fig. 2, a section taken along the line 22, Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3, a section similar to that shown in Fig. 2, illustrating the useof collecting troughs without the aid of guiding screens.

The reference character 2 designates the separating chamber of theseparator which by means of a vertical partition 3 is divided into atailings compartment 4 and a concentrates compartment 5.

A screen 6 divides the concentrating chamber from the downwardlytapering airchamber 7 which at its lower end connects with aconveniently located source for the supply of air under pressure. I

The two chambers are rigidly connected by means of cap-screws 8 and theseparating chamber has at opposite sides of its partition, openings 9and 10 for the discharge of the tailings and concentrates from therespective compartments.

The material is fed into the tailings compartment from a hopper 13,across a flaring apron 14 which covers the concentrates compartment 5,and the partition is at its lower edge spaced from the supporting screento provide a passage 12 through which the mineral particles of the oremay move from the tailings compartment into the concentrates compartmentas will hereinafter be more fully described.

In the operation of the machine, a jigging or pulsating movement isimparted to the material supported upon the screen-bottom of theseparating chamber by the intermittent supply of compressed air to theairchamber 7, and the particles of material in the tailings compartmentare in consequence stratified according to their difi'erent specificgravities.

The mineral particles which displace the lighter tailings move to thebottom of the tailings-compartment and eventually pass ,the screen uponwhich .the contents of the concentrating chamber are supported, arecollected in'a trough 15 which in accordance with our invention isplaced transversely of the air-chamber between the opposite end-wallsthereof.

The trough in its preferred form is composed of two sections whichdiverge from a point invthe vertical axis of the chamber and passthrough openings in the end walls of the chamber between-which theyextend.

The trough-sections are comparatively narrow and may be made of tubeswhich are fitted in the walls of the openings of the airchamber andwhich have the upper half of their portions within the chamber, cutaway.

I The trough-sections are sufficiently inclined to cause the outwardmovement of the ore particles collected therein, by gravitation andtheir tubular ends connect outside the chamber with conduits 16 whichconvey the collected material to conveniently located receptacles inwhich they are stored as a part of the concentrates which it is desiredto recover.

The upwardly directed air-currents pass ing at oppositesides of thetrough are diverted toward the sides of the chamber as indicated in Fig.3, and produce a partial vacuum adjacent the apex of the trough,as at A,with the result that the greater portion of the particles fallingthrough the screen bottom of the concentrating chamber are drawn towardthe middle portion of the air-chamber and into the trough through whichthey move by gravity into the conduits connected at the outer endsthereof.

The falling ore particles may further be directed toward and into thetrough by the provision of screens 17 which slope from the-side'edges ofthe supporting screen to the corresponding edges of the divergingsections of which the trough is composed.

' By making these screens of a large mesh, preferably exceeding that ofthe supporting screen .of the concentrating chamber,

' they present but little obstruction to the'upward movement of the'air,while they are adequate to intercept the falling ore particles andguide'th'em into the trough.

Having thus described our invention what we claim and desire .to secureby Letters Patent is: M v v '1 Ina pneumatic ore separator characterized by'an air-chamber and a superchamber, an inclined troughdisposed-insaid air chamber to receive material falling through thescreen,-before it reaches the airinlet, and passing through a side ofthe chamber to convey said material to' an ex terior point of discharge.

3. Ina pneumatic ore-separator characterized by an air-chamber-ancl asuperposed separatingchamber divided .by a screen, and

an air-inlet at the lowerend of-the air-ch am-' ber, an inclined troughdisposed in said air chamber to receive material falling through thescreen, before it reaches the air-inlet, and having an air-tightconnection with an open ing in'a wall of the chamber to convey saidmaterial to an exterior point of discharge.

4. In apneumatic ore-separator characterized by an air-chamber andasuperposed separating chamber divided bya screen, and an air-inlet atthe lower end of s the airchamber, an inverted V-shaped trough dis posedin said air-chamber 'to receive material falling through the screen,before it reaches the air-inlet and having air-tight connections withopenings in opposite walls of the chamber.

. 5. In a pneumatic ore-separator characterized by anair-chamber and asuperposed separating chamber divided by a screen, and

an air-inlet at the lower end of the airchamber, an inclined troughdisposed in said air-chamber to receive material falling through thescreen, before it reaches the air-. inlet, and passing through a side ofthe chamber to convey said material to an exi terized by an air-chamberand a superposed 1v separating chamber divided by a screen, and anair-inlet at the lower end of the airchamber, an inclined troughdisposed in said air-chamber to receive material falling through thescreen before it reaches the air inlet, and passing through a side ofthe chamber to convey said material to an exterior point of discharge,and a screen slanting upwardly from an edge of the trough to conductsaid material into the same.

7. In a'pneumatic ore separator characterized by an air-chamber and asuperposed separating chamber dividedby a screen, and an air-inlet atthe lower end of the airchamber a slanting trough beneath the screen,which extends in spaced relation to opposite walls of the air-chamber,and in connection with an opening in another wall of the same, whereby apartial vacuum is produced by upwardly moving air currents, which causesmaterial fallin through the screen to move into the trough.

8. In a pneumatic ore separator characterized by an air-chamber and asuperposed separating chamber divided by a screen, and an air-inlet atthe lower end of the air-chamber, an inverted V-shaped trough whichextends beneath the screen in spaced relation to opposite Walls of theair chamber and in Copies of this patent MacCartliy Commissioner ofEatents,

Washington, D. G.

